Students weigh in on election, polls

When the Election Day dust settled atop the decaying leaves Wednesday, many students were left wondering the words, "Will I be better off in four years than I am now?"\nThe 2004 re-election of President George W. Bush is not surprising to many Hoosier students, since Bloomington's own Monroe County and the residents of Lake County were the only two counties throughout the state of Indiana in which the majority of voters supported democratic hopeful Sen. John Kerry; Nationally, Bush won the popular vote by more than four million votes.\nSince the report of a President Bush electoral win in Indiana was announced before all the votes had been tallied, some students seemed bothered by the lack of importance weighed in each American citizen's vote. Senior Traci Bates, a first time voter on Election Day, said she looks forward to the next four years.\n"It felt good to vote," Bates said. "I guess it felt like you make a difference. I'm definitely happy Bush won; we can now look forward to what will happen, and not worry about what has happened. You never know what is going to happen when you bring in a new president -- dealing with the whole terrorism thing. I believe in a lot of things Bush does."\nWith a Republican Party stronghold gripping the social, economic and moral future of the Hoosier state, some students voted to not vote on Election Day. Despite being registered Americans willing to cast their ballots, sophomore Mark Thostesen said he and his friends decided not to vote as a political statement of democratic freedom. Tuesday was Thostesen's first opportunity to vote in a national election.\n"There is a big group of us that decided we didn't like either candidate," Thostesen said. "So we decided not to vote. But we registered, so it was recorded that we are able to but chose not to. I think it is important to note I didn't vote for the third party. I do not favor Bush; I am not a Bush supporter. Since the third party vote is seen as voting for Bush, I didn't want to be labeled as such. "\nBesides registering and not voting for any of the three presidential candidates on the ballot in Indiana, some students voted to not participate in the political processes at all. Avoiding all Election Day scenes, freshman Sam Jerome said politically-minded people know a third party isn't going to win. However, he said third party votes matter despite the attention they avert from Democratic and Republican candidates. \n"Registering to vote and voting was in the back of my mind, between school and stuff," Jerome said. "I'm really not for Kerry or Bush. I think things will turn out OK in the end; we won't know for 20 years. I think we will still be here, we as Americans, more so than the human race."\nConcerned with the current political debates about abortion, stem-cell research and the war on terror, junior Jeremiah Cosner cast his vote for apathy instead of a great American democratic ideal; he voted to vote for the voice of his family, although he never registered.\n"I come from a Republican background," Cosner said. "My parents voted for Bush; I agree with what they chose. With Bush, I'm confident in his choices and the decisions he makes. They've already asked him once if he was for the draft; I see no problem. There are plenty of (American citizens) willing to go over (to Iraq)."\nAs the trials and tribulations of Election Day 2004 fades into the fine print of newspaper pages, at least one student recommended health and wellness tips for Hoosier voters feeling regret, remorse or sorrow after Tuesday's Republican spanking -- take a fresh look in the mirror when coping with President Bush's re-election.\n"You don't have a choice but to deal with it," Jerome said. "There are only a limited number of ways to deal with the problems our country has. Unless those problems change, which is possible, the way you deal with those problems must change." \n-- Contact staff writer David A. Nosko at dnosko@indiana.edu.